All language subtitles for Marcus.Wareing.Simply.Provence.S01E07.720p.WEBRip.X264-SKYFiRE

There is one special place where
I worked as a young chef that

has remained close to my heart...

Didn't think I'd come to France
and find a Barnsley chop.

..and one region in particular that
is full of passionate producers

and incredible ingredients.

This is Provence!

We are going to be discovering
the secrets of the very best

and simplest French cooking.

That is a discovery.

SHE LAUGHS

Nice and easy,
simple dinner for one.

I'll be sharing tips,
tricks and techniques...

We've got flavours of Provence.

There's sunshine for you!

..and enjoying a bit of friendly
rivalry along the way.

That was close!
I'm a little nervous.

I knew I wouldn't be able
to fool them.

LAUGHTER

All in the name of bringing you
a simple taste of Provence.

In Provence, the markets and shops
are awash with an extraordinary

array of fresh fruit,

all locally produced,
and it's got me thinking.

Back home, we love our
fruit-based classics

like strawberries and cream
or apple crumble.

And I want to discover if
it's the same here in France.

Do they have a passion
for retro recipes?

And what simple fruity French
dishes could rival our

traditional British favourites?

There was one fruit that
when I was growing up

always felt like a luxury item

and you only ever really
saw it on restaurant menus.

But, in Provence, it's everywhere

and it's making me feel
all nostalgic.

Cantaloupe melons!

Look at this.

Wow!

I always used to remember going
and buying these with my dad

at the marketplace but...

MARCUS SNIFFS

..it's the smell that
gets me every time.

Great memories.

Now, hands up if you remember
the simplest of starters -

melon wrapped in Parma ham?

I know I do, but what do
the French do with their melons?

I'm vising a family-run farm
within the spectacular

landscape of the Luberon
to find out.

They grow a variety here
that's recognised as the most

popular in France,
the melon de Cavaillon.

The hot climate here means
they benefit from long growing

seasons from May to September,
and I'm joining Sacha...

Monsieur, bonjour.

..right at the end of harvest.

Sacha? Hey, yeah. How are you?

Nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you, too.

Enchante. Wow!

Stop! She's going to run me over.

Is the melon one of the most popular
fruit in Provence, in France,

in the south of France?

Yeah. In Great Britain, we have it
in the supermarkets... Yeah.

..but it's not the common fruit.

I think the melon in France
is the first.

First? Yeah. Is it? Yeah. Oh, wow.

Yeah. Because all the grapes
are made into wine? Yeah!

That's why. That's why!

As we can see, this one...
Wow! ..is the Charentais jaune.

You have the Charentais vert
and Charentais jaune.

Vert is green, jaune is yellow.
Yeah.

This is the yellow? Yeah.

How do you know when this is ready?

When you are in the supermarket
if you see the...

..this side cracking?
Oh, yeah.

And the yellow skin and the smell,

it's 100% sure it's a good melon.
It's good to go. Yeah. Yeah, yeah.

So, the all-important question...

How do you eat it?
Do you just eat it?

Just straight.
Just straight? Yeah.

Like right now.

Of course, I should have known,

here in Provence simple is king.

Sacha's team are back
from their break

and I seem to have
joined them for a shift.

So let's go.

You need to...to keep your eyes
in all this line.

OK. And when the yellow
come to you, this is...

It's the one?
Yeah, this is the one.

A yellow melon means
they're ripe for the picking.

And to celebrate this produce
in its simplest form,

each melon has to be perfect.

Yeah, like this. And it's soft.
Beautiful. And like this.

Much like pumpkins,
they grow on low-lying vines...

OK.

..and Sacha and his team
harvest each and every one by hand,

to prevent damaging the fruit.

It's actually quite nice to
feel like part of the team.

Yeah!

It's hard work,
but I'm getting off lightly.

Is this the second time
you've been round to collect?

So six. Six times? Yeah.

Yeah, six or seven.

So this must be full? Yeah.

Wow! Like you can...
You can have your bucket,

just put your bucket here and
just fill it, the bucket, just...

In that space? Yeah.

Ah, it's like gold!
Yeah. Fields of gold!

The colour is gold, yeah.

Who is the...? Who's the...?
My girlfriend.

I'm working with my father,
my mother, my girlfriend,

every my family.

I used to go to a market
with my father... Yeah.

..and it was in Liverpool,
in the north west. Yeah.

And we used to pick up boxes of
melons and they were so, so special.

I can understand that.

I could do this all day.

I have no problem.
Everyone say that the first time.

MARCUS LAUGHS

How many hours in the field,
do you? Ten. Ten?

Yeah, around ten. Ten days? It
depend of the day, but around ten.

We're almost coming to
the end of the row now. Yeah.

And I know it's only one row,
but can I try some?

Yeah, but you will regret that.
Why?

Because when you came back
in England...

It's not the same. Yeah.
I know. I know, I know, I know!

Melon may never taste
the same again,

but it's a risk
I'm willing to take.

Thank you.

Like a big smile!

SHE LAUGHS

It's growing under the sun,
it lives under the sun...

Mm-hm.
..you eat it under the sun. Yeah.

This has never been in a fridge.

In middle of Provence.

Yeah, in the middle of Provence so
the flavour's never been suppressed.

Incredible.

I wonder if Sacha's girlfriend,
Myrtille,

shares his views on how
it should be eaten.

What's the best way you
enjoy eating the melon?

Yeah. Just a slice of melon.
Like this.

Any time of the day. Any time.

It's official -

they both like to keep it simple.

So, they might be in for a shock
with what I have planned next.

To say thank you for having me,
I've arranged to make Sacha

and Myrtille a classic retro
dish from home.

You may not agree with
what I'm about to do,

but I've got a British classic
that I think will absolutely

knock your socks off and
something I'd like you to try.

Just bear with me, OK? OK. OK.

When I came to Provence, I'd never
have imagined I'd be creating

a retro dish from the '70s
for a load of French farmers!

Well, here goes nothing!

When I was training to be a chef,
this was posh.

OK. So this, this was a very,
very special way of cutting melon.

But the dish I'm going to do
for you is a classic

in all hotels,

quite a lot of restaurants
and lots and lots of pubs.

A little bit scared
of the tomato ketchup!

What? This one?

Ta-da! There we go.

Nice.

What I'm doing is what we call
a great British prawn cocktail.

Prawn cocktail,
with a Marie Rose sauce,

and melon - your melon!

Lettuce in there.

He's not...
You're not with me, are you?

Really scared.

Not quite the reaction
I was hoping for!

I don't know what's scaring me more,
you trying my food...

THUNDER RUMBLES
..or that thunderstorm behind me!

Bit of mayonnaise.

I can already see
I'm losing my audience...

LAUGHTER

Why are you laughing?

It's French mayonnaise!

Ketchup.

..but there's no turning back now.

Is that the sauce for the melon?

No, no, it's for the prawns.

And where are the prawns are going?
On there.

THEY LAUGH

What are they doing?

Little bit of pepper.

Et voila. Wow!

Prawn cocktail a l'anglais!

You're not impressed, is he?

THUNDER CRACKS
He's so not impressed with me.

I'm worried. Look, you can hear
the cracking of the thunder,

you can hear that,
that's his thoughts.

Right, come on. Taste test.

It's not as simple as they'd like
their melon, but it's not far off.

An easy prawn cocktail.

Come on! Surely this going to be
a taste sensation.

Guys?

I will never think about
making this... Yeah.

..but the combination is nice.

For me, for sure, I prefer the...

..the two things separate.

That's not the point! Yeah. Sorry.

Tough, tough audience, I've got
to say, it's a tough audience.

They may not have liked
my British classic,

but I'm hopeful
I can convince some of the others.

I'm not looking forward to this!

They're not looking very sure
about what I'm doing.

OK, you ready, to taste?
Oui. Oui. For you guys.

THUNDER CRACKS

It's thundering again -
that's a bad sign!

Good? Yeah.

I'm nervous.

Time to employ the famous
Wareing charm.

Now I've got to give them
a hug to win them over.

I'm doing everything in my power

so that, hopefully,
they give me the thumbs up.

Here we go.
Good or bad? Up or down?

C'est bon. Good. Good.

LAUGHTER

This one's not moving.

I've got three out of five.

I want to go home!

In hindsight, it might have been

a bold move going full retro
with my melon prawn cocktail.

I guess you can't win them all.

I'm hoping I can make it up
to Sacha and Myrtille

with dinner back at mine
in Saint Remy.

My mission to find simple Provencal
recipes to rival our favourite

fruity dishes from back home
is not as easy as I thought.

But I'm hoping my luck
is about to change.

I'm off to the foot
of Les Alpilles Natural Park

and Hotel Hameau Des Baux,
to meet head chef Julie Chaix.

Trained under Alain Ducasse, Julie
creates simple dishes inspired by

childhood memories
and her Provencal roots.

Which means she knows a thing or two
about classic French cuisine

and it seems she's already
got the measure of me,

because she's
challenged me to a cook-off,

pitting a traditional English pud
against a classic French dessert.

Bring it on!

Bonjour! Bonjour!
Hi, chef. Julie? Yes.

Marcus. Nice to meet you.
Enchante, enchante.

Oh, look, we're ready.

Yeah. Apples. Apples.

What are you making?
I make a clafoutis.

Clafoutis? Traditional clafoutis.

I love a clafoutis.
You like it? Oh, I do!

This is my grandma recipe. Really?

And it's something very special for
me, because it was good memories.

Clafoutis is a super simple dessert

of cooked fruit covered in batter
and baked in the oven.

But can it beat my ultimate

and unbelievably easy
British classic?

I'm making crumble. OK.

I very much doubt it!

Traditional English. Yeah.
Traditional anglais.

This you will like.

Shall we get cooking,
shall we get preparing?

We're both using apples,

so it's an even playing field
as far as the fruit is concerned.

And I'm confident the good old
crumble can come out on top.

I wonder if Julie shares Sacha and
Myrtille's opinion of our cuisine.

Julie, what's your view
of British puddings?

I didn't like sugar and
I think you... Oh, yeah?

Yeah, I didn't like too much.

And I think it was
a little bit sugar for me.

Too sweet? That's my taste. OK.

That's really not
what I wanted to hear.

We both start by frying off
our apples in butter.

But, for her clafoutis,
it looks as though Julie's already

employing some tricks of the trade.

You've put some butter in your dish
and you've lined that with sugar,

that's like you do with a souffle?

Yeah, of course, I put some
sugar and... Butter? ..butter.

Like that, they make a crust. OK.

And when it was cooked
and we serve very hot,

this crust was the best.

I don't know about the best,
but it certainly does sound good.

For her clafoutis batter,
to flour Julie adds eggs, sugar,

vanilla pods and almond powder.

Is the almond an optional,
or is it normal?

No, it's optional.

I think it was better,
because it makes them crunchy

when you're eating and
the flour it was not the same.

Mm. Yeah.

You just get a little taste
of the almond. Nice.

Yeah, of course. Nice.

You have now, but after,
when you eat, after it was cooking,

we have a lot, the flavour
will bring me all the mouth.

Julie is pulling out all the stops,

but, while she's letting
her apples stay firm,

I'm breaking mine down to give
the perfect texture to my fruit.

So for me, the apple,

I'm going to cook those down so
that they start to become stew.

The apple,
it was not too much cooking?

More, needs cooking more.
More? Yeah.

And after in the oven?
Almost like a puree. OK.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.
That was, I think it was delicious.

But Julie's going one better -
with cognac.

And that's it.

The French love a flambe!
Yes, of course!

They love theatre,
they love a flambe.

We, we use some wood
so why not use a flambe?

Not to be outdone...

Now you've flambeed yours,
I think I need to flambe mine, too.

Probably not too hot now. No.

That's the joy of
cooking outside. Yeah.

But mine's not going to plan.

Ooh.

Mm, it's not enough hot, think so.

Mm? Mm!

Not quite the theatre
I was hoping for.

Do you ever get the feeling
you've been sabotaged?

I've lost the heat of my pan
and there's no fire.

You had all the theatre.
Yours, it was very more than mine.

I know, you had all
the theatre, I lost the flame.

It takes more than
a bit of French gamesmanship

to knock me off my perch.

I'm cracking on with my crumble.

Everybody in the UK
knows how to make this.

This creates this crust
when you have the on the top? Yeah.

Soft underneath
and then crunchy on top. Mm-hm.

This definitely wins
the simple stakes.

That's the beauty of a crumble -

a handful of ingredients,

easy technique

and a total crowd pleaser.

It's going to take some beating!

Everybody loves it, it's affordable,

you can use just simple apples,

you don't need expensive fruit.

I made this the first time
was at school

in my Home Economics class,

because it was just all about
getting your hands in.

Just great fun.

Would you like some vanilla? Yeah.

I just need some seeds. Why not?

I think Julie might be
feeling guilty about the flambe.

Oh, a little bit
of French love there.

There we go.

With both dishes nearly ready,

all that's left to do is add
the batter and my crumble...

This just goes on top.

Right, we are good to go.

..and put them in the oven.

Right, I'm done. Yeah?
You ready? Yes, of course.

So lead the way,
show me where the kitchen is.

After 30 minutes,
the classic French clafoutis

and traditional
British crumble are ready.

Smells good. Yeah.

It looks like good.

Are you happy? Yeah. I'm happy.

Now the moment of truth.

First up, the clafoutis.

Has Julie delivered
a fruity French classic

to rival my crumble?

Mm.

The almond... Yeah.

It's a nice touch.

And the apple with the cognac,
really, really good.

It's interesting,
cos that's the first time,

I think, I've had this with almonds.

OK. And I like it,
I think it's really good.

That's different. Mm.

Now it's my turn.

Right, crumble time.

Yes.

This is very simple.

Big test, so I've brought
a little bit of cream.

Normally some ice cream
or some custard.

Try that, there we go. Thank you.

So this is a really big moment
for British puddings.

SHE LAUGHS

Verdict?

It was...

The crumble like crusty and sweety,
it was very delicious.

I really like it.

Success!
I was worried for a moment there.

When you put a touch of cream
with it, this is home comfort food.

Yeah, of course.

I don't think either of these
are a winner in some sense. No, no.

I think they're both perfect
and both delicious

and, actually, full of memory.

So thank you... Please!

..to discover me
this beautiful recipe. I love it.

Have I persuaded Julie to
take on this British classic?

La crumble.

Avec le custard!

You never know!

The classic crumble
may have helped me

redeem myself and
the reputation of British cookery,

but the prawn cocktail fail
is still playing on my mind.

So I've invited Sacha and
Myrtille round for dinner

with the aim of pairing melon with
something that meets their approval.

Now call me
a glutton for punishment,

but I've thought of another
British retro dish I want to try -

melon and Parma ham.

So I've arranged to meet up with
restaurateur and friend Jerome,

who's kindly organised
a charcuterie tasting

to see if any of the local meats
can bring my idea to life.

It turns out the best place
to eat cured meats around here

is in a cellar - who knew?

Grapes, of course.
Wow, what a beautiful room.

Yes, it's nice, isn't it, yeah?

Be careful where you walk in here.
Yes!

You don't have to be too small...
too tall, yeah?

I'm going to sit down!

And of course, whenever I'm with
Jerome, there's always some food.

Food on the table, always.

French people,
they love that kind of stuff,

when you mix vegetables
and charcuterie

and a bit of cheese
and obviously bread. Yeah.

Before we begin,
I want to know if Jerome thinks

I'm on the right track with
my dish for Sacha and Myrtille.

I've got to ask you this, Jerome,

because you're a very well-known
man in the village, in the town,

your reputation goes far and wide.

Tell me, what's your opinion
on Parma ham and melon?

I love that! Oh, gosh! Yeah.

I'm sorry, I'm French. The classic!
Yes, it's really classic.

It's not really trendy any more...
No.

..but it used to be everywhere,
on every menu and restaurant. OK.

This is something my mother
cooked at home. Really?

So, yes, on Sunday,

you had the kind of melon
and Parma ham or prosciutto.

So it's not just a British thing.

It turns out we do share
a love for one retro dish

with our friends across the pond.

Shame the same can't be said
of the prawn cocktail.

I went to a melon farm... OK.

..and the producers,

I served them a classic
melon dish from back home.

And then scoop out the seeds and
I put a prawn cocktail... Prawns?

So prawns... OK!

..cocktail sauce,
a little bit of lettuce,

and, voila, I served it. OK.

Did they like it?
They weren't happy. OK...

Seafood and melon,
it's not so common, yeah?

But it's not, but then... Yeah.

..also Parma ham and melon.
Yeah, yes.

I'll just gave to let it go.

Moving on!

And you've got mortadelle,
so this is typically French as well.

I see this all over France,
everywhere I go

and I have to say,
this does not appeal to me.

Really? Yeah, because there's an
element of it that looks processed,

and I see ham like this back home.

You can see it's not processed
because of the quality.

You can see the peppers,
very good quality.

Very soft. Very soft, yeah, yeah.

It's like butter, it just melts.

It's very good.
Yeah, it is. It's really good.

Very, very tasty.
This is something you like as a kid

and as a grown-up,
you like it as well.

It's OK, but I've spotted
one thing I like the look of.

And so this one? Ah, saucisson.

Saucisson.

It doesn't get
more French than that!

So this one is really local

and is really soft.

So you can get different
qualities of saucisson.

Usually, when you've got
that kind of platter,

you don't want something
really dried, you know,

because it's much
more difficult to eat,

and here it's really simple.

Feels like butter as well. Mm.

Big flavour.
Yeah. Really interesting, yeah?

Very big flavour.

I've found a winner!

I think if the Parma ham works,
then I know the saucisson will work,

and I think they'll be
very happy with that.

And of course a bit of bread. Yes.

That's not a problem.
No, it's not a problem at all.

That's what I'm going to do. OK.

Right - decision made.

Now I've definitely learnt my lesson
about messing with melon,

so I'm keeping it really simple

for my dinner with
Sacha and Myrtille tonight.

An easy to put together but
impressive looking retro buffet...

..of melon, of course,

charcuterie, baked goat cheese

and a super-speedy mackerel pate.

I've got a fresh mackerel,
and I want to serve it fresh,

so I'm just going to
show you a process

that's nice and simple and easy,

and it's very, very cost-effective.

Most pates are made in advance

and need to be set in the fridge
over a couple of days,

but I want to show you
a delicious cheat's pate,

using fresh fish, that's ready
to go as soon as it's made.

I'm just going to cut

just underneath
the little fin there.

Bought whole, mackerel is one of
the cheapest fish you can buy

and filleting it yourself is easy
when you know how.

Slice down the back, like so.

What I love about mackerel is
it's so soft.

It just comes off, simple as that.

And I just tend to
just nick the head off,

just go underneath the bone,

run your knife nice and close.

Simple.

There's your filleted mackerel.

Easy.

Get a drizzle of olive oil
onto a tray

and lay the fillets skin side down

to protect the fish
and prevent any sticking.

Then season with salt, pepper,

fresh rosemary and thyme.

I remember going mackerel fishing
off the Kentish coast

and the most sustainable way of
catching mackerel is line caught.

I think I remember filleting it
on the boat.

A bit of salt, phwoar,
straight out the water?

Absolutely fantastic.

Lemon zest on top.

Mackerel fillets prepped,

it's time for the goat's cheese.

And very, very simple,

baked goat's cheese
is absolutely sensational,

but when you add
some other ingredients to it,

it really, really does come to life.

I'm using cherry tomatoes.

Just chop them in half.

And as the cheese sort of
starts to soften,

the tomatoes start to break down

and all the lovely juices
just come oozing out.

And scatter them around
the goat's cheese before adding -

brace yourselves -
a sprinkling of lavender.

The lavender is quite
an unusual herb

to put with this dish,
but it does work.

Again, it's one of
my favourite herbs.

Some thyme,

and, last but not least,

a drizzle of honey.

So it's a lovely marriage of
flavoursome ingredients

working together
once it starts to bake.

Cheese and mackerel ready to go.

They're covered in foil
and placed on the barbecue.

You can hear that going?

Oh, that's quick.

In fact, I can see...

I can hear that sizzling away!

Literally that is less than a minute
and that's good to go.

Now I have to remember
to rein myself in.

I've got my beautiful melon here.

And very, very simple, we're just
going to be doing melon wedges.

I've learnt my lesson.

Don't mess with the melon.

Just cut it up, serve it up.

But there's an age-old classic
out there that we all know

and are familiar with,
and that's melon and Parma ham.

So that's why I've got
a little bit of local ham here

that I'm going to put on the board
with my melon.

You could say
they're like old friends,

they've had a little bit
of a barney,

we're just going to
keep them separate on the board,

rather than putting them together.

Old friends meet again.

Melon wedges, look at that!

Once the bread's cut...

You can dip that
into my mackerel pate.

..it's just a case
of adding the charcuterie...

I've got some local cured meat so
I'm going to put that over here.

There we go.

..before moving on to the pate.

And now my mackerel,

which we are going to just
take off the skin,

into my bowl.

Yeah.

Oh, wow. Mm.

Three quarters of the mackerel
are flaked,

before adding creme fraiche,
horseradish and rosemary.

So I'm just mashing up
my little mackerel pate,

and now what I'm going to do
is just going to break

the last few pieces of
the mackerel up

and then just fold it in,

so you've got the soft,
sort of crushed-up mackerel

and then you've got little chunks
just folded into it.

There we go.

Now, I know what you're thinking.

"Melon and seafood? Again?"

But it's OK -

I'm keeping them separate.

It looks like a little pate dish,
I thought I'd just serve it in here.

One last grating of the lemon zest.

All I've got to do now is just bring
over my goat's cheese and tomato,

and I think we're good to go.

Oh! There we have that,
look at that.

Wow, that smells incredible.

That is a feast and a half.

Melon and charcuterie board

with fresh mackerel pate

and baked goat's cheese.

A simple taste of Provence

that lets the beautiful
Cavaillon melon

speak for itself.

There we have it -
a buffet fit for friends.

I can't wait to see what
Sacha and Myrtille think of it.

The moment has finally arrived,
a chance to redeem myself

and show Sacha and Myrtille

my simple, fresh new take
on a retro melon dish

that will hopefully impress

just a tad more
than the prawn cocktail did.

Hello! Hey, Marcus!
Hey! How are you?

Nice to see you. Come in, come in,
come in. Nice to see you.

Nice to see you.
Come and sit down, sit down. Yes.

We don't normally shake hands
in France, do we?

Hey. We kiss!

And it looks like
I'm off to a good start.

Well, I'm happy because
I can see there is like... Yeah!

..a normal slice of melon
with nothing on it.

I took your advice!

I asked you one question, "What's
the best way to eat the melon?"

and you just said, "Like this!"
Like this, yeah.

With no ketchup around,
so that is good!

No, Sacha - no ketchup here.

I definitely learned my lesson
with that one!

So what I've made

is this beautiful, like,

pate with mackerel... OK.

..and creme fraiche
and a touch of horseradish.

I've put off the moment
for long enough.

Why don't we just tuck in, guys?

Just have some melon, bread, salami.

I'll let you tuck in.

The mackerel is so good. Mm!

Result!

Yeah, the cheese too. Mm.
It's amazing.

And I do think the mackerel
does work a little bit

with the sweetness. Perfect!

Thank goodness for that!

I wanted to see if there
was a passion in Provence

for retro recipes and
simple, delicious fruit dishes.

Well, it's certainly
a yes to the latter,

but the prawn cocktail

will definitely be
coming back home with me.

Cheers! Cheers!

Here's to the melon!

Sante. Sante. Sante.

If there's one lesson
I have learnt about the melon,

and that is to keep it simple.

Keep it natural, don't mess with it.

Just serve it as it is.